MOBILE, Ala. — Game 26 • South Alabama Jaguars (19-6, 8-6 SBC) vs. UTA (20-6, 12-3 SBC) • February 28 2019 • 7:00 p.m. • College Park Center • Arlington, Texas.
THE COACHES
SOUTH ALABAMA
Terry Fowler, (Lane [Tenn.], '86)
at USA: 79-98, 43-65 SBC (6)
Overall: 286-276 (20)
vs. UTA: 4-6
UTA
Krista Gerlich, (Texas Tech, '93)
at UTA: 96-81 (6)
Overall: 264-134 913)
vs. South Alabama: 6-4
LAST GAME
The University of South Alabama women's basketball team fell to Troy 58-66 on Saturday afternoon at Trojan Arena to split the season series vs. the Trojans.
The Jaguars went on a 13-0 run late in the fourth quarter to cut the Trojans lead to six points, but the comeback attempt fell just short as the Trojans held on for the win. After South Alabama got off to a 4-0 start, Troy took the lead and held on to it for the entirety of the ballgame, going up by as many as 19 in the fourth.
A big difference in the game was on the offensive side of the glass. Troy, the leading rebounding team in the country, held their own on the boards today pulling in 26 offensive and 59 total rebounds and collecting 19 second-chance points.
South Alabama was held to shooting 33.8 percent from the floor and 13.3 percent from behind the arc. The Jags missed their first nine three-pointers of the game, and didn't connect on a three until Savannah Jones hit one at the nine-minute mark in the fourth quarter. Devyn Lowe hit the second, and last, three for the game for South to complete their 13-0 run late in the game.
MULTIMEDIA
Television: ESPN+
Radio: 710 AM WNTM
Live Stats: USAJaguars.com
Live Audio: USAJaguars.com
Live Video: USAJaguars.com
SERIES NOTES
South Alabama is 4-7 all-time vs. the UTA Lady Mavs. The two teams first met at the Arkansas Dial Classic on Nov. 21, 1999, with the Lady Mavs taking that game 61-73. Since UTA joined the Sun Belt, the Lady Mavs own a 6-4 record against the Jaguars. The teams first-two conference games went to Overtime, with the Jags winning both contests, 73-72 (Jan. 25, 2014), and 60-57 (March 8, 2014) From 2016-2017 the Lady Mavs rolled off four-straight wins against the Jags, including a 65-53 win over South at the 2017 Sun Belt conference tournament. The Jaguars ended that streak in the teams lone meeting last season, defeating UTA 76-63 in Arlington, Texas.
OPENING TIP
South Alabama (19-6, 8-6 SBC) is coming off of a 58-66 loss to the Troy Trojans on the road Saturday, Feb. 23. The Jags sit in fifth place in the Sun Belt standings entering play on Thursday night, and boast the fourth best scoring offense in the Sun Belt at 70.0 points per game. The Jags are shooting at a clip of .430 from the floor and .350 from behind the arc. South paces the league in FG percentage defense (.351) and three-point FG percentage defense (.266).
Savannah Jones leads the Jags with 15.5 points per game, and is shooting the three-ball at a .449 rate for the season. Jones ranks first in the league and 8th in the nation in the category.
The Jags rank 1st in the conference with 4.3 blocked shots per game, Antoinette Lewis paces the Jaguars and the Sun Belt with 1.8 per game, culminating with two six-block efforts this season, most recently at Appalachian State on Jan. 5. The sophomore forward has brought in seven double-doubles this season and is tied for 13th in the nation with her .600 FG percentage.
The Jaguars are 3-2 coming off of a loss this season, and have not lost more than two games in a row the entire season. In wins, the Jaguars are averaging 8.2 three-pointers per game, while putting up just 4.0 in games they lose. In those losses the Jags fall by an average margin of 11.0 points per game.
UTA (20-6, 12-3 SBC) enters play on Thursday in first place in the Sun Belt standings. The Lady Mavs knocked off ULM, 60-56 in OT this past Saturday on the road in Monroe, La. UTA has lost just one conference game at the College Park Center in 2019. The Lady Mavs fell to Little Rock, 61-62 on Feb. 14. Little Rock accounts for two of UTA's three conference losses, with the other coming in the conference opener at Georgia State back on Jan. 3.
Cierra Johnson leads the Lady Mavs with 14.7 points per game, and is shooting .512 from the floor, and .462 from the three-point line (18-39).
UTA leads the conference and ranks 18th in the nation in team field-goal percentage, shooting at a clip of .458. The Lady Mavs sit in first, one spot above the Jags, in three-point FG percentage, hitting .389 percent of their shots from behind the arc. Brooke Alexander leads UTA with 48 threes made and is connecting on 40.7 percent.
UTA leads the league in assists per game (17.5), Turnover Margin (+4.5) and Assist to Turnover Ratio (1.2)
They Said It
Head Coach Terry Fowler
On UTA: "What they do well, is they have five players that can dribble, pass, and shoot; they don't have a traditional five player. They space the floor, give you multiple defenses, and they can create matchup problems for you. We have to be solid in our principles on the defensive end of the floor, and play with pace on offense. A lot of it is going to come down to getting stops and rebounds, then setting up the offense."
On preparing for the conference tournament: "It's just one of those things, were back in the hotel and you get into that routine. We have to focus, move forward, and use it as preparation."
Any motivation playing the first-ranked team in the conference: "No, we have had some great battles with them in the past. Coach Gerlich and I both came in the league at the same time. So it's a big game, because it's the next game. It's a great opportunity to play at their place, they have great crowds, and really looking forward to the challenge."
NEXT GAME
South Alabama stays on the road to take on Texas State on March 2. Tip-off vs the Bobcats is slated for 2 p.m. on Saturday in San Marcos, Texas at Strahan Arena.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872). Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
—USA—
